The Emerald Isle

Flying in over Ireland is definitely one of the most impressive and awe-inspiring things that you will see. If you thought flying over Vegas at night was impressive, wait for this!

Picture this… it’s the end of a 30+ hour plane trip. You’re tired. You’re sooo tired. Your iPod is out of batteries, you can’t text people because the plane will crash and it will cost about a million dollars per message, and…the phenomenon which you never thought possible has occurred: You don’t want to watch another Disney movie!It’s true. But then, the sun is coming up as you’re making that last flight from Heathrow to Northern Ireland.And you look out the window, and I swear, you have never seen anything more green in your entire life. The fields literally look like emeralds, and when they reflect the sun, you forget how tired you are, and you forget that you don’t have music to back up this pivotal moment in your life.So you land and life is back to normal…BUT IT’S NOT!Oh my gosh! I love travelling so much, and the fact that you’re in a new and different country is always exciting!

So what are my favourite things or memories about Northern Ireland?

Well, obviously, Jaffa Cakes! Those of you who have never, ever, in your entire life had a Jaffa Cake are really missing out! A Jaffa Cake is basically a biscuit-y, cake-y base, with orange flavoured jelly hidden underneath chocolate. It. is. heaven.

Then, of course, I have to mention Jammie Dodgers. Two pieces of biscuit with jam in the middle, with a cut out heart in one of the biscuits that the jam squeezes through. Great concept right! Hehe!

But Ireland isn’t all about the food! Carrickfergus Castle was a great place to visit when I was a kid! I don’t really remember what we did inside, but I can still picture it from the outside. And about 5 minutes away, we bought Pasties from a Fish & Chip Shop, which are only in Ireland! Maybe I am all about food after all? I also remember discovering that my Aunt’s car had automatic windows, which I had never seen before in my life! Luckily for her, they had a lock button, so my sister and I stopped letting cold air into her car (it was the middle of Winter!).

The Giant’s Causeway! It’s basically heaps of columns of all different shapes and sizes, and the legend goes that one giant built it to connect himself to another giant, or something like that! The legends and myths surrounding the Giant’s Causeway are so interesting, and this is definitely my favourite place to visit in Ireland! It’s really amazing, and in that same area there is also a masssssive rope bridge over to Carrick Island. It’s such an amazing area and so gorgeous! I was carried over this bridge by my dad because I was too afraid to walk when I was about 6!

Portmuck! It’s a tiny bay in Northern Ireland, and along the rocky beach there are massive old Limestone mines (?) in the cliffs! It’s the most gorgeous area and has managed to somehow escape most of the impacts of tourists. Whenever we went to Portmuck as a kid, we would always search for shells along the beach to collect.

Bangor! Aaaaaah this was the most awesome part of Ireland when I was little! What more could you ask for than massive, swan-shaped boats! And a train! Life was totally complete!

There are a million more things I could say about Ireland! I remember my sister and I putting socks on our hands on the step outside out Gran’s house, because our hands were cold! And the photo of our colourful socks and welly boots is still on the bench in our house today (from way back when we were cute!).

We would go hunting for frogs in Gran’s garden, much to her confusion! Every morning we’d wake up and there would frost on the ground (bear in mind that whenever I was there it was usually around Winter!) and we would run outside to catch snowflakes on our tongues.

I have to say, I might be able to live in Ireland if it didn’t rain so much! Yes, it’s probably not as bad as England, but still! I’d rather have beaches that are sandy and sunny rather than rocky and rainy anyday!

Obviously, there is so much more to Ireland than this! There are the people, the hidden local attractions and the pubs which Ireland is famous for. I also love all the shopping, like British Home Stores, Marks and Sparks (aka Marks and Spencers), Tesco…the list goes on! I love shopping wherever I go in the world, and Ireland is no exception!

So my adventures in Ireland so far have been great. The memories I have from my childhood and more recently will stay with me for life, and I definitely want to go back in the near future!